Name:
Carcharodontosaurus (Greek for "great white shark lizard"); pronounced CAR-kah-roe-DON-toe-SORE-us
Habitat:
Woodlands of northern Africa
Historical Period:
Middle Cretaceous (100 million years ago)
Size and Weight:
About 40 feet long and 3 tons
Diet:
Meat
Distinguishing Characteristics:
Long, bulky head; small brain
About Carcharodontosaurus:
A close relative of Giganotosaurus--which lived a continent away, in South America--Carchardontosaurus was one of the biggest carnivorous dinosaurs that ever lived, with a longer skull than even T. Rex. On the down side, though, this carnosaur (a type of theropod, a group of bipedal carnivores that included both tyrannosaurs and raptors) appears to have been substantially more stupid, with a much smaller brain cavity compared to its head size.
Carcharodontosaurus has had an especially troubled fossil history. When its remains were first discovered, this dinosaur was believed to have been a species of Megalosaurus, and its original remains were destroyed in a bombing raid on Germany during World War II.
